Cedar Crest College Appoints Giannini to Dean of School of Adult and Graduate Education

Allentown, Pa. (August 16, 2012)—Gaetan T. Giannini, Jr., MBA, was recently appointed to the position of dean of the School of Adult and Graduate Education (SAGE) at Cedar Crest College. Giannini has served the College in positions of increasing responsibility since joining the faculty in 2005.

In 2011, Giannini—chair of the department of business, management and economics at Cedar Crest since his arrival at the College—was promoted to associate professor and granted tenure. He has been a driving force behind the implementation of many new programs and has served on a host of boards and committees.

During his first year at Cedar Crest, Giannini proposed and implemented the B.S. in marketing program, and several courses have been added to the business program under his direction, including Applied Public Relations, Marketing Research, and the Marketing Practicum. He also was a key figure in development of the Cooperative Education Program: Four-Year Accounting and Marketing Experience—a major academic initiative in the College’s strategic plan with a tentative launch in fall of 2013—and in the department’s successful efforts to achieve ACBSP accreditation for several degrees, including accounting, business administration and management.

SAGE launched in October 2011 with a wealth of academic programs, excellent support services, and a seamless credit transfer policy designed to help adults advance their careers.

Giannini said of this new opportunity: “I am excited about the growth prospects of adult and graduate education, and I think Cedar Crest is ideally suited to become a leader in the education of people dedicated to lifelong learning in the Greater Lehigh Valley and across the globe. The skills I’ve acquired in my business career will help me improve the already exceptional experience provided to adult students at Cedar Crest, and enhance SAGE’s presence in the community by developing partnerships with businesses and community organizations.”

Giannini has taught a host of courses at Cedar Crest College, including Applied Advertising; Applied Strategic Management; Power, Influence and Negotiation; and Writing for Management. He is a member of the President’s Cabinet and the Master Planning Committee. Before joining Cedar Crest, he taught advertising and marketing at East Stroudsburg University as an adjunct faculty member. He was named one of the Top 20 Business People Under 40 by the Eastern Pennsylvania Business Journal in 2003.

Giannini has a great deal of interest and expertise in using new media for strategic marketing, including Facebook and Twitter. His textbook, Marketing Public Relations: A Marketer’s Approach to Public Relations, published by Pearson-Prentice Hall in 2009, provides practical tips and techniques all businesses and organizations can use to bolster their marketing efforts. He wrote the study guide for the fourth edition of Pearson-Prentice Hall’s Business in Action, and contributed as a writer to the book, Leading the Salesforce. He has also reviewed several books and presented at many conferences related to his field.

Prior to his work in academia, Giannini had more than 15 years of experience in sales and marketing, most recently as president/owner of Giannini O’ Connor LLC public relations and marketing firm in Allentown. Much of his previous employment combined his knowledge of engineering and marketing.

Giannini earned his MBA with a marketing concentration from Seton Hall University, and his bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering technology from Temple University. He also earned a certificate in international business from the Institute of International Business at Seton Hall.